Background and Current Status

Significant research efforts are underway to develop commercially viable, technically feasible, highly efficient, and highly reliable power converters for renewable energy, electric transportation, and various industrial applications. This chapter presents state-of-the-art knowledge and cutting-edge techniques in various stages of research related to impedance source converters/inverters, including the concepts, advantages compared to existing technology, classification, current status, and future trends. Electric power generation comprises traditional power generation, such as hydroelectric, thermal and nuclear power production, and renewable energy sources, which already has a large penetration joined by photovoltaic (PV) and wind energy. In applications that need to boost the voltage, the Z-source converter is a possibility. Power electronics is the enabling technology for the energy processing necessary for electronic and electrical equipment of all types, from renewable energy to power systems, from house appliances to aerospace systems. New power electronic devices, such as the SiC and GaN, will definitely improve the Z-source converters' performance.